Living in the Shadows
by enjoytheride201
Summary: NOT A FF  Serena has been held captive her whole life with her abusive father in her home, which she calls the Sanctuary. And when she escapes the Sanctuary, there's no turning back, what with her new life happening. Or is there...?
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

You know, you're really lucky. Yeah, I'm talking to you. Have you ever met someone as different, as incredibly out-casted, as me? No, I thought so.

Okay, so this is really dangerous for me, considering the amount of trouble I can get into with my dad. He doesn't like me talking to people who don't really know me. But, since I'm here, and I'm gonna tell you my story no matter what, you'll know me within no time.

My name is Serena, but I go by S. Just S. I'm fourteen years old, and I live with my dad, who I just call Dad. But, that's pretty obvious, isn't it?

The perk to living with Dad is that I get spoiled to death, even though I don't ask for much. The downside, he keeps me hidden away in our own little corner of the world. Literally. I'm not talking about being grounded for a month with no friends, no cell phone, no computer, and no T.V. I'm talking I have to be chained to the house when I go outside. I'm talking I live in a dome of trees that no one can see through. I'm also talking majique get-aways if anyone sees me traveling with him.

He's protective of me. I don't know why, but that's just the way it is. Trust me, I've asked him why no one can know about me, but all he says is that I'm too special to be exposed to the Outsiders (that would be you). I think it's because majique is just so rare these days, and if I showed my majique to other people, they would bombard me with requests that could only be fulfilled majiquely.

I can tell my father means well, but… I don't like it, shut up all day with nothing to do, no connection to the outside world.

But, I love him, and I don't wanna break his heart if I left and got hurt.

He lets me out sometimes, like I said before, _traveling with him._ But even then, I have to stay away from people. Normally, I just cast an invisibility charm on myself, super beginner, but sometimes I don't.

This story, one caused by an idiotic mistake made by yours truly, is about when I didn't


	2. Chapter 1

**Part One**

Somebody to Love

**Chapter One**

I stared out the glass, watching the heavy rain fall through the branches of the Concealing Trees. Hey, why not? It's not like there was anything better to do.

"Rena!" called Dad. "Dinner's ready!"

I sighed, glanced at my stray hair, and blew it out of my eyes, only to have it fall right back in place. I growled with frustration and got up to go downstairs.

When I reached the kitchen, the unpleasant aroma of sweet potato casserole and fried beans engulfed me, and I almost puked.

Dad handed me a plate. I stared at it in disgust, and then looked back at him, giving him a look that said, "I'm not eating this."

"Oh, c'mon, Rena!" He said, gently pushing the food in front of me.

"No." I retorted, crossing my arms.

Dad stopped smiling playfully and stood up straight, his face becoming stern and serious. "Serena Elizabeth, you will eat this food whether you like it or not!"

"No." I repeated, raising my eye brows. "You can't force me to do something that I don't wanna do."

"_Serena!"_ he boomed. Without being undermined by his voice, I turned on my heel and headed out the front door, not stopping to put my "safety" harness on.

The cool, January air felt comforting to my face, soothing the heat that was boiling inside of me. I was so freaking tired of Dad telling me what to do, you know? I mean, I'd been living with him all my life, with no break to do something I wanted to do. It was always, _Serena, don't go outside without your harness on, or else you'll get hurt,_ or _Serena, you can't have a computer because computers have the Internet and someone will come to the house and hurt you._

But who cared if I got hurt? I wanted to just... _leave._ I wanted to go to Italy and France, like Nancy Drew. I wanted to see the amazing things the world had to offer, the wonderful culture, like I saw on T.V. and read in books.

I stopped walking at the edge of the stream outside our house, looked around, and saw that Dad was almost within spitting distance of me. Quickly, I reached into the pouch that held my Dispearance Dust and threw it at the ground, letting it scatter around my feet.

"Serena!" my dad said again. He reached out and grabbed me just as I was starting to fade away, so he swiped right through me.

"Bye!" I snickered, waving as I was sucked into emptiness.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

The nothingness almost suffocated me, but before I could die, I landed back in reality, in the city I so little visited with Dad. It was only on occasion that we went out together.

When I was little, I used to watch him go to work, and sometimes went to work with him when I was sick. He'd sign me in as his niece, and I really didn't notice until I saw the log when I was four and was old enough to comprehend in my over developed brain what was going on. It wasn't until I'd got my asthma attack when I was six that Dad convinced his boss to let him work at home. Everyone thought I died because of that asthma attack, and that's why Dad had gone to work at home. But I was still here, I survived, and the real reason he came home was because he wanted to be with me if anything like that happened again.

Pft. As if. My asthma hasn't bothered me since then. But maybe it was because I hadn't done anything since then to risk the state of my breathing.

The soft glow of the street lights shone lazily above my head, and I quickly stepped out of the street, considering it was eight on Friday night and people would be eager to get home to watch new episodes of their favorite T.V. shows.

Looking around to make sure no one saw me, I flipped the hood of my jacket over my head to hide my face and started walking in no particular direction. I thought about getting something decent to eat, and remembered that my money was at home. I paused for a minute, thinking about the eighty dollars I hid on my bookshelf, in between _MAX: A Maximum Ride Novel_ by James Patterson and _FANG: A Maximum Ride Novel_ by James Patterson, a small portion of my fourteen years of savings.

As a reward to my majique, I felt the wad of cash appear in my pocket. I held onto it tightly as I looked around for a fast food restaurant to pig out in. Dad always gave me low amounts of food. He said if I ate too much, I'd get fat, and it would be harder to hide a fat, fourteen year old daughter then a skinny one. Hey, those were his words, not mine. Personally, I believe my dad to be a racist, offensive man.

I'm ashamed of him.

I walked on next to the road, darting in the shadows whenever someone would drive by. Eventually, I found an almost empty burger joint — perfect for me. When I walked through the glass doors, I inhaled the wafting smell of salted fries and greasy hamburgers. My stomach growled, and I approached the counter, staring up at the lit up menu board.

"Can I help you?" The teenager at the cash register asked. She had bushy red hair pulled back under her yellow visor, and a bored tone to her Boston accent, sounding like Fran Fine from the Nanny.

"Hmm..." I mused, still staring at the board. "Are the number threes any good?"

"Look, hon, I only work here, I don't eat the food." She said, leaning on an elbow.

"Okay then," I sighed. "Then I have four number threes with cheese, lettuce, and mayo, four thingies of fries, a hot fudge sundae, and... a Dr. Pepper."

The cashier glanced down at my stick-like figure. "Uh-huh. You gonna finished all that, sweetie?" she asked annoyingly.

"I have a big appetite. Trust me."

"Okay," she said, doubt shining through her voice. Then calling to the back, "Yo, Artie! We got a pole, wants four cooked cows! Numbah threes, American, salad, and mayo, all combos with a frozen moo juice and a doctor!"

_Huh?_ I mentally asked myself.

Was it just me, or was this girl crazy?


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Smiling with delight, I sunk my teeth into the third burger. I wasn't full yet, but I wasn't as empty as Dad kept me, which made me happy. The melted cheese, the greasy meat… oh, it just tasted _so freaking good!_

The bell on the door rang as someone opened it, and I panicked for a second, fearing that Dad had found me.

But it was just a kid, around my age, getting some food. I let out a breath of relief and continued eating.

The red-headed Bostonian girl shouted the kid's order to Artie, who was apparently the cook in this place, and a good one at that.

"Yeah, thanks, Brooke." I heard the kid say, his voice barely audible. My heart started pumping in my chest — the kid sounded kinda cute, if that's possible. I turned around to get a glimpse of him, and sure enough, he was cute, reminding me of my favorite character from Maximum Ride, Fang, who I had a _major_ crush on; dark brown hair that looked black, dark eyes, and tan. How come I couldn't be tan? Oh, yeah, that's right; lack of sunlight at home.

When he saw me staring at him, I blushed and quickly faced my food again, finishing Burger Number 3 and starting number 4. Hoping that he would just walk on without stopping to talk to me, I pulled my hood over my head a second time.

But that didn't work.

"Hey," he said, coming to my table. "Can I sit here?"

Dumbstruck that a guy _this_ cute would come talk to _me,_ I nodded, unable to produce words in my mouth. He sat down across from me and held out his hand. I took it.

"I'm James Rogers." He said, smiling, but showing no teeth.

"Serena…" I paused for a second. Dad didn't like it when I gave my last name away, but who cared? "Serena Johnson. You can call me S." Oh, God, why did I just say that?

"Well, okay then, S." James put emphasis on the S. "Is all of that for you?" he gestured to my food.

"Yeah," I said. "I'm normally not allowed to have a lot of food, but now I can. Dad's not here and I can do whatever I want." I took another bite of my last burger, finishing it off. I reached for the last of my fries, the repeated, "I have a big appetite."

"Cool," James said, nodding in agreement to a skinny girl eating what she wants. Then he paused for a second. "What do you mean; you're dad's not here?"

I stopped chewing. "I, uh, ran away." Not a lie. "Because... uh..." My voice trailed off.

"Did your dad abuse you?" James asked, worried.

"No! Not that, it's just... I ran away because he... scares me." I looked deep into James' dark eyes, the kind of dark you only get on a clear, summer night with no stars out. "He didn't like me doing things without consulting him first. If I did, he would, well..." I held out my arms for James to see, and pulled back my sleeves. My wrists were covered with rope burns, my forearms were slashed with deep cuts. I was used to the pain that came with the scars, but they hadn't only left a physical mark, also a mental one.

"Oh, my _God,_" James breathed. He looked at me. "S, this _is_ abuse. When your dad beats you or does whatever he does, that's physical abuse."

"I know," I said quietly. "I just don't want him to get in trouble. He loves me, he really does, he just has a bad temper." I thought quietly to myself for a second. "You're not gonna tell, are you?" I asked James. He shook his head.

"Not if you don't want me too."

I sighed. "Good."

"Did you just move here?" He asked after a moment of silence. "I've never seen you before."

My heart started beating faster. I was nervous like crazy. "Uh, yeah," I lied. "I'm homeschooled." That last part wasn't a lie. Dad homeschooled me ever since I had my asthma attack, which is why I had an overdeveloped brain. Unlike humans, I use all of my brain rather than some of it, what I believe to be a small contribution to my majique powers.

"Oh, well, that's too bad. I think you would've really liked Perkins High."

"Yo! Darkness! Your food's ready!" Brooke called over my shoulder. James gave her a glance, and then turned his attention back to me.

"Sorry, I gotta get my food. Be right back." He got up and went to the counter, and I watched James' dark figure grab a small paper bag and a large soda. He walked back over to me, and sat down, reaching into the bag to get his sandwich.

After taking a bite, James looked at me seriously. "Do you have... anywhere to go?" He asked. I shook my head.

"I don't know my mom, I don't have any aunts or uncles, and my grandparents are dead." I said, truthfully. I really didn't know my mom, Dad didn't have any siblings, not that I knew of, and I saw my grandparents die when I was three. Car crash, I don't like to talk about it.

"Well, you can come and stay at my house. I have an older sister, but she's at college right now, and I'm sure Mom would let you use her room." He offered.

"Thanks," I said, uneasy. Something about this seemed a little off. "But I couldn't ask that of you, not when I barely know you."

"Okay, then, how about I tell you about myself. My full name is James Anthony Rogers, I live on Garrson Road, and I have a 19 year old sister named Caitlyn Penelope Rogers. My favorite food is French Fries, and I don't have a favorite color. Oh, and when I was eight, I had a hamster named Jupiter because he was so fat."

I laughed. "Well, my full name is Serena Elizabeth Johnson; I haven't memorized my address, yet," _Nice save, Serena. _"I have no siblings, my favorite food is chocolate cake, and my favorite color is neon green. I've never had a pet, but when I was six I had an asthma attack." Oh, God, why did I just say that?

"Huh. You don't look like a girl who has asthma." He said.

"Yep," I replied, pulling my emergency inhaler out of my pocket and shaking it to show it was full.

James finished his burger, me, my ice cream, and he got up. "You wanna give my mom a shot? She's a sucker for a sob story. If you told her that your dad abused you, and you ran away, I'm pretty sure she'd take you in like a stray puppy."

"Sure, why not?" I gave in. "Wouldn't hurt to try."

Hopefully, this wasn't another stupid mistake.


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"Oh, you poor thing!" James' mom said as a reaction to my story, pulling me in a tight hug, my wet hair soaking her shoulders.

"Mom?" James said as she squeezed me even tighter. "I think you're crushing her."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" she said, letting me go and wiping tears from her eyes. "You're just so boney!"

"No, you're okay. And, I know, my dad barely let me eat." I said, rubbing my arm where her bracelet nearly pierced my skin.

Mrs. Rogers tried to smile, but it came out more of a grimace. "Are you hungry, dear? Anything?" she asked.

"No, thanks," I replied. "I just ate."

"Uh, Mom?" James asked again. "I was talking to S earlier and I was thinking she could sleep in Caitlyn's room. Is that all right?"

"Oh, of course it is! Serena, you're very welcome to stay here as long as you need to. I'll even send you to school, if you want!"

My eyes widened. "School? Really? As in, public high school? With other kids?" I was super-excited. Oh, come on, you can't blame me. I've wanted to go to public school ever since I started home school.

"Well, yes, of course! Is there anything different besides private school?" Mrs. Rogers said.

"Home school," James piped up.

"Yeah, there's that, too," she agreed

"I've been homeschooled ever since I was six," I said.

"Oh, that explains your excitement."

There was a short pause, and then James said, "C'mon, S. I'll show you Caitlyn's room."

He grabbed my arm and led me up the carpeted stairs, into a dimly lit hallway. He flicked a switch, and the hall lights blazed on, giving a gold tint to the walls.

James pointed at the door to the left. "That's Caitlyn's room," he explained, then gestured to the door on the right, and then the middle. "My room and the bathroom. Mom and Dad's room are upstairs."

I looked in the direction of the unnamed door, and I guess that it led to a loft.

"Here, I'll get you some sheets," James opened a door thinner than the others, and when I saw what was inside, it was clear why. I guess the linen closet isn't as significant as other rooms.

Curious, I walked towards Caitlyn's room, and pushed open the door. Her walls were a light olive green and all of her furniture was made with cherry wood. The bed spread was sky blue with green vines and white lotus flowers. A tall bookshelf was absolutely _filled_ with books, and a small desk held lined paper and tons of pens and pencils. The short, long dresser was immaculate and empty, and same as the closet.

This was definitely my kind of room.

Ugh. I just remembered all of my stuff was at home. Quickly, I focused on everything, and my clothes filled the closet and dresser drawers. Boxes of journals, shoes, and my lamp. Dad's laptop (yes, I stole it from him. Take that, Dad!), my books, iPod, and finally, the small stuffed monkey Dad told me Mom had gotten for me when I was born. Then I realized I forgot something. I looked at the nightstand and the picture of my dad, Mom, and me when I was born appeared.

Like I said, I never met my mom, but I still knew that she looked just like me; long, dirty blonde hair, dark blue eyes, and fair skin.

"Whoa," James said from behind me, and I knew he knew that there was nothing in the room before I was there. "Where'd all this come from?"

I whirled. "How much did you see?" I asked panicked.

"Um, just the part where you made a picture frame appear on my sister's nightstand." He replied, confused.

"Oh, God!" I sighed. "I'm so stupid! I should've known better, but _no._ I just had to show off." I smacked my forehead.

"Uh, S? Are you okay?" he asked, sounding a little scared.

"No, I'm not okay!" I practically screamed. "I just showed majique to an Outsider! My dad is going to kill me!" I started hyperventilating.

"S, calm down!" James put his hands on my shoulders. "What do you mean by magic?"

"No, you said it wrong. It's _majique_. Maa-jick, not mad-jick" I emphasized. "And I mean that I'm majiquel. That's majique, spelled M-A-J-I-Q-U-E. Not M-A-G-I-C, like in Harry Potter. I swear, sometimes people don't know they're from their from there."

"Okaaaayyy…" James said. "So, you're _majiquel?_" I nodded. "How?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I guess my mother had some majique in her, and she passed it on to me." I glanced at the picture of her, smiling at the camera, her rosy red lips and cheeks brightening my mood.

"Huh. That's weird." He said.

"I guess so, but if a parent had majique, wouldn't you think that it would be passed through blood?"

"No, not that." James pointed at my picture. "Is that you and your dad?"

"The blonde is my mom. I'm an infant in that picture, but, yeah, that's my dad. Why?"

"Your dad... he looks familiar..." he turned to face me. "Did your dad ever work at the architect building in the city an hour away?" Uh oh. My heart started pounding with nervousness. Dad was an architect before he went to work at home.

"Uh, yeah. We lived in the city for a while, and then we moved here. He still works there, just at home now."

"That's really weird. _My_ dad works there, and I overheard him talking to my mom after I went to bed about a guy at work who had a daughter who died from an asthma attack when I was…" James paused for a moment. "Six."

My pulse increased by three beats.

"S, when's you're birthday?"

"April thirteenth." I replied, hoping he wouldn't ask me for the year.

"And the year?" Crap.

"Nineteen… nineteen ninety-six,"

"Serena Elizabeth Johnson..." James muttered to himself. He ran out of the room and across the hall into his. I followed. He was on his computer, _Googling my name._

"No, don't!" I said, trying to get him away from the keyboard, but the screen already popped up and he'd already clicked the link to a short obituary dedicated to me. I gave up.

"'_Serena Elizabeth Johnson, age six, died last night of a fatal asthma attack. Her father, Gregory Johnson, is absolutely devastated from his loss, considering he couldn't catch his breath when asked about his feelings for Serena. Wanting no one else to see her body, the miserable father cremated his daughter himself. He even built a memorial for her in a private graveyard, and refused to have a funeral service for her since no one knew his daughter well. But even though this is true, rest in peace, Serena.'"_ He read.

While he was reading the part about my "body", I'd collapsed in a ball on the floor, hugging my knees close to my chest, tears streaming steadily down my face. Sobs escaped from my mouth every couple of seconds.

Suddenly, my sphere-like body was being cradled by strong, gentle arms. Since James was the only other person in the room, I automatically assumed it was him. I buried my face in his chest while he stroked my hair.

"Shh," he whispered, squeezing my shoulders closer to him. Then he pulled me off himself and held me at arm's length. "Serena, why are you crying like crazy?"

Gasping for air, I gulped and took a deep breath to calm myself down. "Because I lied! I lied to you._ I don't like lying!_ My whole life is a lie, and I can take it anymore! It's driving me _insane!_ I can't do it anymore, I'm not dead, and I have to tell people! I, Serena Elizabeth Johnson, am...not... _dead!"_


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

I didn't sleep for the rest of the night, even in Caitlyn Rogers' plush bed. James' dog, a little German Shepherd puppy named Sergeant was curled up behind my legs.

It was probably around five in the morning when I saw the hall light turn on under the crack of the door. I started getting uneasy. I couldn't remember what today was, and didn't school start at eight, not six?

Quietly, I got out of bed, tip-toed over to the door and, opening it a fraction of an inch, peeked out. Sergeant's ears perked up, then he put his head down on his paws again, going back to sleep.

Someone was walking around, that was for sure, but I couldn't really tell if it was one of Dad's "friends" that were posted around the town that were supposed to come after me in case I escaped.

Hilarious, right?

Suddenly, an overpowering urge took over my body, and the dreadful thought of facing whoever was out there popped into my head. I had to take a freaking whizz.

Sighing, I pulled on my slippers over my pajama pants and, acting like I didn't know anyone was in the hallway, I swung the door open and nearly crashed into James.

I jumped for a second, wondering what the hell he was doing up at five in the morning, and I calm down. Sergeant got up from the bed and came to sit on my feet. I bent down and picked him, cradling him in my arms.

"God, you almost gave me a freaking heart attack!" I whispered fiercely, not wanting to wake his parents up or scare the puppy. I hadn't met Mr. Rogers, considering he came home at eleven and I was too beat to stay up that long.

"I should say the same," James said, almost glaring at me.

"What are you even doing up? It's, what, five A.M.?" I hissed. Uh oh, here comes Feisty Serena. Sergeant started licking my face, and I gently nudged him away.

"It's Wednesday. I have school at seven, and I gotta take a shower." He replied, keeping his voice low.

"Well, I gotta pee, and I think my current bladder condition is more important than your future hygiene." I retorted, stalking towards the bathroom door as I spoke. James sighed.

"Fine, just don't be like Caitlyn and take two hours."

"Deal."

I opened the door and quickly shut it behind me once I was inside, letting Sergeant down from my hold on him. After flushing and washing my hands, I looked at myself in the mirror. Somehow, I didn't look like the same Serena that lived with her abusive, loving father in a sanctuary made by trees, scarred and curious about the outside world. Okay, I was still curious, but I wasn't fearful of what would happen to me if I left Dad and my home.

I knew now, what could and would happen to me, and I guess that just running away made me feel way more... _mature_ is a good word for it.

Again, I almost bumped into James.

"Bathroom's all yours," I said, gesturing towards the small room. "But don't kid yourself; it's not all it's cracked up to be."

He chuckled as he walked past me and into the brightly lit, windowless room. "I'm leaving at six thirty. Mom really wasn't kidding when she said she'll send you to school. If you wanna come, you can."

I smiled. "Thanks, but no thanks. I'm still getting used to the fact that I'm not living with Dad anymore. I don't think I'll want to go to school until next week. Or, maybe even tomorrow."

"Wow, you're eager to do something, aren't you?" I nodded with, well, eagerness. Sergeant continued running around my legs.

"Kay, see ya later. Night!" James closed the door.

"Night!" I called over my shoulder, heading downstairs to make some breakfast. I was hungry, and, trust me; a girl like me can't sleep with a hunger pain like this.

Sergeant barked, and I picked him up. "Yes, you can have food, too." I said jokingly, hugging him.

I loved this dog.


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

The plate of pancakes I'd just made was literally as big as my head. Well, when you're me, and you've lived with a father who doesn't know how to cook for fourteen years, you get used to making big breakfasts so you'll have food for the rest of the day. Boy, oh, boy, was James in for a wakeup call soon.

I forked three pancakes off the top of the stack and set them on my own plate, then rustled through the pantry, looking for syrup. When I found it, I poured pretty much a fourth of the bottle — and it was, at the very least, seven inches in height.

_Maybe I'll be a cook someday?_ I thought to myself as the warm, buttery delight of my pancakes melted on my tongue. Sergeant was scampering around my ankles and I bent down to scratch his neck.

"What the...?" James said, coming down the step, his hair still wet from his shower. I looked up at him, syrup dripping from the corners of my mouth.

"Hi!" I said through a mouthful of mush, and then swallowed. "I made pancakes!"

"I can see that," he said, chuckling a little. "Wow, they smell good!"

"Thanks! When you're the daughter of a thirty-year-old who doesn't know how to cook, watching Rachael Ray really helps. You want some?" I held out the plate of flapjacks and Sergeant jumped up into my lap as if to say, _Yep!_ "No, not you,"

"Sure, but I'm gonna have to hurry. I still can't believe it took me twenty minutes to take a shower! And my bus comes in a half hour..." his voice trailed off. "You know, normally I watch T.V. before school. There's usually something good on, but I don't feel like it this morning." Sergeant barked.

"Really?" I said, nervous because of the thought that just popped into my head about what James would rather do. "Because, uh, I think that Full House is on right now."

"Eh, well, it's not like it's a new episode. All they play these days are stupid re-runs." He muttered. There we go! The perfect chance to change the subject! Again, the little German Shepherd barked.

"I know, right? All the good shows ended before I could even remember! And, trust me, that's a good thirteen and a half years!"

"Thirteen and a half? You're fourteen, right?" He asked, confusion clouding his face.

"Yeah. For some reason, I have an over-developed brain. I use more of it then the average human." I explained. "I always thought that's why I could do things other people couldn't, but there was more to it than just being able to control stuff with my mind."

"Like what?"

"Well, for one thing, my fingertips glow in the dark, only when I want them to, and I can turn invisible whenever I want, and at that, anything I'm touching."

"Uh huh, sure." He mused.

"I'm not kidding! Look!" I taped the plate that the pancakes were on with the tip of my middle finger and it disappeared, making the pancakes look like they were floating in mid-air. James was speechless.

The plate flashed back into place, and I scowled. "Dammit!" I hissed. "It never stays as long as I want it to. The one flaw with turning other objects invisible. When I used it on Dad and me, it works just fine, even with my dog Gingerbread, but not with inanimate objects! No, they have no self control!" My heart ached with the mention of my small Cocker Spaniel, who was still home with Dad, but then I remembered I had Sergeant. Then I got an idea.

"Hey, does Sergeant like other dogs?" I asked, smiling slyly.

"Yeah, I guess. He's real playful. Why?" James said.

"Would it be okay if Gingerbread came here? She's only a few months old and she's got all her shots." I pleaded.

"You're gonna have to run that by Mom. She's the boss around here."

"Oh my, God, thank you so much!" I threw my arms around James and squeezed super hard. What can I say? I love my Gingerbread.

"Hey, I gotta get to the bus stop. I'll see you at two!" he literally had to peel me off him. I was incredibly happy.

"Bye!" I called after him. And I was just standing there, beaming.

I have a feeling I'm gonna like it here.


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

My buds were dug deep into my ears, and I was listening to What the Hell by Avril Lavigne. I sat on Caitlyn's bed, not really sure of what to do for the next seven hours that James was at school. Did he have a girlfriend I didn't know about at school?

God, what was I _thinking?_ Why should I care if James had a girlfriend or not? It's not like I have a crush on him or anything. I mean, I've only known him for a max of ten hours.

There really is no end to this madness, is there? I was so freaking sick and tired of not knowing anything about this outside world. Maybe Dad was right. Maybe I really would get hurt.

Looking around for something to do, I wandered over to Caitlyn's bookshelf, which, unlike her closet and dresser, was filled with books. Man, I really had to switch them out with mine, but I really didn't feel like digging around in the majiquely packed boxes for books.

I glanced at the titles of the books, seeing things like _Gossip Girl _and _Twilight._ Not really my kind of books...

Then I saw a flash of metallic blue from the third shelf down. Curious, I pushed other books out of my way, and saw the series I loved the most; _Maximum Ride._ I could really relate to it. I mean, a girl who grew up in a cage, escaped one day, and can't trust anyone? Sound familiar?

But, seriously, I was probably the most obsessed _Maximum Ride_ fan on the face of the planet. I've read every book — from _the Angel Experiment_ to _FANG _— in the series at least three times. I knew almost every funny quote, what chapter Max got her brain attack (63) and, even though I didn't get to go out, I dressed up as Max for Halloween, complete with the ivory, brown, and tan wings and dirt smudges on my face.

I chilled out for the first book, and it was about an hour later when I heard the phone ring. I almost went to get it, then realized if I answered, I would have to tell whoever was on the other line a lie. Again, I. Do. Not. Like. Lying. Period.

What sounded like Mrs. Rogers picked it up, considering she was the only other female in the house besides me. I pulled out my ear buds.

"Unh huh," she slurred. "Yes, I'll come get him."

Quoting the song that I was previously listening to, what the hell? She was obviously talking about James, I knew that, but why? Did he get sick? Oh, God, if I got James sick somehow, I couldn't live with myself.

I disregarded the conversation I heard, only guessing that it was something wrong with medication or something. Did he have asthma, too, and had run out? Or allergies. Everyone has allergies, right?

The alarm beeped, and ten minutes later, it went off again.

Quickly, I got up and out of Caitlyn's room and went to the top of the stairs to eavesdrop. The pitter-patter of Sergeant's nails against the hardwood clinked noisily up, as did Mrs. Rogers' voice.

"I can't believe you got in a fist fight during second period! What were you thinking, getting yourself suspended?" she yelled, and apparently, James was with her. But I expected that, since she pretty much said she was going to pick him up.

"Mom, it's really not a big deal. It's only for the rest of the week." He protested.

"No big deal? James, getting suspended is on my list of 'Worst Things You Can Do In School' as number four! I don't know why you would do this, really! It's not like you..." her voice faded.

"What are your top three?" James asked, sounding sarcastic, but from what I barely knew about him, he was serious. Mrs. Rogers sighed.

"One is getting a girl pregnant. Two is doing drugs, and three is getting expelled." She said, exasperated. I giggled, and decided to join myself into the conversation.

Quietly, I went down stairs to see what all the ruckus was about, even though I already knew.

"What's up?" I said, nonchalantly when I entered the kitchen. Then, as if I just noticed James, I said, "What're you doing home so early? I've never been to a real school before, but I'm pretty sure it's over an hour long."

"Oh, Serena!" Mrs. Rogers said. "James here got in a fight at school, and as punishment, the school suspended him for the rest of the week."

"That doesn't really sound like punishment — getting days off just for punching someone." I pointed out.

"Well, that's just how public schools work." She replied.

"You know, Mom, S has a point. Getting a busted lip is punishment enough..." James put in.

"Don't talk, James. Go up to your room and stay there until I decide what to do with you." Mrs. Rogers commanded.

"Fine," James muttered, trudging up the steps. When he was out of sight, Mrs. R turned to me.

"Serena, would you like breakfast? Anything to drink?" she asked politely.

"Um, no thanks. James and I woke up at the same time and I made pancakes. You can help yourself, they're for everybody." I replied.

"Oh, you're such a doll! How sweet?" she cooed, and then started attacking the pancakes I made earlier.

"Thanks. I'm just gonna go upstairs and lay down, I'm kind of tired."

"Okay, dear."

I followed James up the steps. I could tell a lie from a mile away, and there was definitely something he wasn't telling his mom.

I gently knocked on his door and swung it open.

"Yeah, sure, just come on..." he started to say, but stopped when he saw it was me. "Oh, hey, S. Sorry, I'm in a mood."

"S'okay," I said, then went to sit down next to him on his bed. "What's wrong?"

"Whaddya mean?" he asked, looking at me.

"James, I'm also the best human lie detector in the universe. I know you're hiding something."

"Oh," he paused for a second. "What do you want to know? I swear, whatever it is, I'll tell you the truth."

Okaaaayyy… it was kind of weird how he just came out and admitted to it. "Why did you get in a fight in the first place?" I didn't think it was the base of the secret, I just thought it put us off to a good start.

He sighed. "I'd rather not say..." I gave him a look.

"You promised..."

"Okay! The fight was faked, happy? I planned it with my friend in first period, I would give him a black eye and he would give me a split lip."

"Because..."

He sighed again. "Because I didn't want you being here by yourself."

I raised an eyebrow. "James, I am a fourteen year old girl who was raised by an abusive father who taught me karate when I was eight. I think I can handle myself."

"Right, forgot about that."

Right there. That moment in time was the time I let my brain go haywire and think whatever it wanted to think. My heart was thudding in my chest, beating faster than it ever did before.

And what was happening when I was focused on James, the only part of my brain I could control at the moment thinking only of him and the short time we knew each other? My brain was shutting the blinds, the door, and turning on a dim lamp. James' computer came to life and suddenly Every Time We Touch by Cascada, the slow version, came on. I blushed fiercely, willing my mind to stop at once. James was chuckling as if it was the cutest thing he ever saw.

"Oh, God, sorry!" I said, getting up from my position on hid bed, but he grabbed my hand.

"Don't be! This is really… sweet." He smiled softly, gently pulling me back down to sit next to him.

And before my over-developed mind could register what was happening, James had put his free hand, the one that wasn't gripping mine tenderly, behind my neck and kissed me.

Man, he was a good kisser. Well, from what I'd experienced, so really, I had no idea.

But, God, did it feel so good. I wrapped my arms around his neck and leaned in, wanting more. One hand was now tangled in my hair, the other at the small of my back.

And then he pulled away.

"Sorry," he said, looking down. "I didn't know if…"

I cut him off. "Don't be," I echoed. Then, I leaned in and kissed him, and our make-out session continued.

Apparently, I was James' girlfriend.


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

Take the happiest moment in your life and multiply it by five. Then imagine something ten times better and add 3. That's how I felt right now, in James' arms. I felt safe, happy, and secure. Like nothing could ruin this.

This is what it feels like to be in love, the feeling that Max described she had for Fang. Now I fully understand what she meant that it was the worst thing that could happen to a girl, yet she highly recommends it.

I was starting to fade out, exhausted by the fact that I didn't get any sleep at all.

"You tired?" James murmured in my ear, rubbing my shoulder. I nodded sleepily. "Yeah, me too." But I fell asleep before he could finish.

James' head was resting gently on top of Serena's. Her hair smelled faintly of cinnamon buns, and her bony body structure felt extremely frail next to his bulky, heavier built frame. She was so tiny, he was afraid that if hugging her too hard would snap her like a toothpick.

He focused on the little time he had known Serena Elizabeth Johnson, how her entire life was just thrust in front of him, and how well he took it. This was the perfect time for him to think about all of that.

James didn't know what made him love her so much. Maybe it was the way she wasn't anything like other girls he'd dated before her — soft, girly, weak, and even anorexic or bulimic. The only reason S was this thin was because her father abused her, right?

Serena shifted and curled up against his body, forcing him to remove his head from hers, yet giving him the option to either feel her butt or cradle her. Not wanting to take advantage of her, he slid his arm between her own and her side, letting him cradle her rib cage with her head in the crook of his arm.

S was different, and he'd never felt closer to anyone ever before. She was his girl. He smiled at the thought of that; _his _Serena.


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

"Are you sure?" James asked me. It really didn't feel like five days had passed since I realized how much I cared about him. It seemed like it was just yesterday I was curled up next to him in his bed, sleeping silently.

"Positive," I said, smiling brightly. "I really wanna go,"

"Okay, here I go," Mrs. Rogers was holding a pair of barber's scissors in her hands, getting ready to cut my hair a little longer then shoulder-length. I saw her gaze in the mirror flick to my green streak.

I squeezed my eyes shut, and just like that, my hair went from Miley Cyrus to Meaghan Martin length. It was straightened out from my large corkscrew curls, finally.

Opening my eyes, I examined myself in the mirror and I liked what I saw. I'd been begging Dad to cut my hair for the past six months, but he kept saying that I had such long, beautiful hair and there was no reason to cut it.

"Okay, now for the final touches," Mrs. R said, who now insisted that I call her Penny, picking up a bottle of mascara and handing it to me. "Do you know how to do your makeup?"

I stared at her in the mirror. "No."

"Oh, that's not a problem. Here," she took the mascara, opened it, and held it in front of my eye. "Blink rapidly," she said, keeping the brush steady. I did so, and repeated for my other eye.

She put the mascara down and picked up a pencil. "Eye liner," she explained, underlining and over lining my eyes with the dark pencil. She did my eye shadow and my blush, and turned me to face the mirror.

I looked a minimum of two years older, and a maximum of six. I smiled and turned to James.

"Whaddya think?" I asked, completely trusting him.

He smiled back. "I love it. You look even prettier then before."

"Aw, young love. It's so sweet!" Penny said, still standing in the doorway.

"Bye, Mom!" James closed the door and leaned down to kiss my newly-glossed lips.

"One sec," I said, before our lips met. I reached for tissues and wiped the sticky gunk off my mouth. "Okay, that's better," I said before we kissed quickly and walked out side-by-side.

We headed downstairs to grab something to eat. I was really doing this. I was really going to public school.

"Granola bar fine? It's six twenty, so we gotta eat something quick. And remember, your name is Samantha Jerald, Sam for short."

"Don't worry, James, I got it all figured out. I'm a transfer student from Washington State, and my parents can't afford a house on their salary, so we're staying with you for the time being. When we met, we immediately started going out because we believe we're _that_ right for each other. See? No stress."

"We _believe_ we're right for each other?" He said jokingly.

"Fine, we _know_ we're right for each other." I said, just to make him happy.

"That's my girl!" he said, putting his arm around my shoulders. Sometimes it's annoying how old-school he is. I rolled my eyes.

As soon as I opened my granola bar, Gingerbread came lapping to my feet, begging me for a piece, same with Sergeant. Penny had agreed to let my Cocker Spaniel come here, saying that she felt bad for the poor thing, being left with my father, considering what he had done to me.

"Okay, guys!" I laughed, getting down on my knees to give them a piece I'd broken off.

I pulled my leather coat and boots on, grabbed my book bag, my _own_ book bag, and waited for James.


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

The bus came a little late at 6:39, but I guess no one's perfect, right?

On board, however, it was loud and rowdy and smelled like my dad's sweaty socks. But when I passed the group of guys who were throwing paper balls and playing dirty songs off their phones, they were silenced, as was the entire bus, Just..staring at me. I felt a little claustrophobic.

Whistles aroused form the guys, and murmurs of sexist things I do not want to repeat were heard all throughout the bus. People thought I was _hot?_

I sat down next to James, plugging in my buds and listening to Every Time We Touch, the slow version of course. I bought it off of iTunes on Friday.

While I was looking through my menu for the repeat option, a girl with thick, dark hair tapped my shoulder. I took my ear bud out and faced her. Ugh. Pink and brown plaid skirt, brown sweater vest, and a white, crisp cuffed long sleeved shirt. Did I mention how much I hate pink? She reminded me of the girl on the cover of Only the Good Spy Young by Ally Carter.

"Hi!" She said cheerfully. "I'm Tammi Nelson! Either I haven't noticed you before or your new, but either way, it's really good to meet you!"

"Sam Jerald," I said. "Yeah, I'm new," Why was I lying about my name, you ask? Well, you're never sure of the people you can trust.

One of the guys who were still gawking at me nudged his friend. "Her name is Sam!" he whispered.

"Guy name? So hot!" Another one said. I rolled my eyes again.

"So, if you need any help finding your way around school, call me! I memorized the layout of the school, so I have no problem finding classes! It's a good thing you're a freshman, or else you would have to go through all sixteen buildings to find one class. Freshman start with eight." Tammi said, getting perkier and perkier by the minute. So perky, in fact, it was getting kind of creepy.

I had a feeling she was the only person on the Pep Squad. She handed me a small, pink card that had her name, number, and e-mail on it.

You tell me, dose a high-schooler really need a business card?

"Ah, I see you've met Twinkly Tammi," James said, looking at the card. "Don't worry, though. I'm pretty sure the office will let you choose who you get to Shadow." I blinked. "We have this thing called the Shadowing Plan, and it's basically you get to follow someone around for two days to see what kind of classes you would want to take."

"Oh," I said, nodding. "I guess that makes sense,"

"You guess?"

"Yes, I said I guess because, honestly, it doesn't make sense."

He snorted. "It makes sense when you go to Perkins High."

"Okay, then," I said, crossing my arms.

"Speaking of school, turn around."

I did so, and I saw literally sixteen different buildings, just like Tammi described. I couldn't even tell where the gym was.

But it was everything I saw on T.V, read in books. Perkins High was big, scary, and... well, I guess the way high school is supposed to be.

"Don't worry, you'll be just fine." James whispered. I looked at him and nodded, hoping that I was better at lying about my emotions then the rest of my life. "As long as you Shadow me."

"Who said I was gonna Shadow you?" I said, smiling jokingly. "Just for that, I think I'll go with Twinkly over there." I gestured to Tammi, who smiled and gave me a quick wave. Just to be nice, I waved back.

"Seriously? You've known me for almost a week and you're thinking of Shadowing _Tammi Nelson_ instead of me?" James asked.

"Oh, stop your whining. I'm only kidding." I said, punching his arm as lightly as I could so I wouldn't hurt him. Yes, I found out that my friendly punches can hurt James, as big and built as he is. Well, he wasn't like a football player who looked like he was hyped up on steroids, but more so that his muscles looked natural.

Again, what was I _thinking?_

"Okay, okay!" he laughed, getting off the bus. I followed him. "I'll take you to the front office, if you want me to." He offered.

"Sure, why not?" I said, taking his hand so I could hold it, and he didn't stop me from doing so.

I couldn't really tell just yet if it was going to be sunny or not, since the sun hadn't come up just yet, but I could still see the students who littered the school's lawn.

From what I could tell, there were the preps, which pretty much consisted of Tammi and her similarly dressed friends, the jocks, some of which were the guys hooting at me on the bus, (again, I rolled my eyes) the cheerleaders, who were all wearing baggy sweat pants and boots, the group of idiots, which mainly consisted of guys who were gathered around a Diet Coke bottle and someone putting a Mentos into the bottle (It blew up), the goths, the nerds, the really weird people... I could keep going on and on, but, sadly, I don't have enough room.

And then there was James' friends. They looked perfectly normal, three guys and a girl.

"Hey, guys," James said casually, not as if he had a new girlfriend at his side. The girl looked at me, as if she was trying to examine my personality from my outside. I looked back, and I could tell one thing from her mind: she liked James, too.

"Uh, James?" she asked. "Do you wanna introduce us to you friend?" Even though the girl was talking to James, she kept staring at me.

"Oh, yeah, everyone, this is Sam Jerald. Sam, this is Meagyn, Luke, Alex, and Nick." James said, putting his arm around my shoulder.

"Hi," I smiled, waving. A flash of something came at me, and I could tell it was from... Nick, right?

"Hey," they all muttered, as if they didn't mind having me there, but they really didn't want me to be a part of their group.

After an awkward silence, James piped up, "Well, I gotta take S to the front office so she can get a Shadow."

"Okay, see ya, James." Meagyn said, and it looked like she was really the only who cared where he went with me.

I had a really bad feeling that she wasn't going to be my BFF.

And, trust me, when I get bad feelings about stuff, they normally come true in the end.


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Mr. Karish smiled at me as I handed him my Shadow slip that had all of my information on it, all fake of course.

"Well, Miss…" he glanced at the little yellow piece of paper. "… Jerald, welcome to Algebra 1. We've been working on matrices, and since we're in the middle of the unit, it's no problem if you get lost."

I smiled back. "Trust me, Mr. Karish. I won't."

"Well then," he said, gesturing to the class, "Please, take a seat."

I nodded, then picked up a book off the shelf and went to sit down next to James.

"Okay, class, your warm up is on the board, and you have ten minutes to complete it. Go!" Mr. Karish said, pulling up the overhead screen.

0 11 0 x 4 3 2 5

My head leaned a little to the side, and I started to calculate the problem in my head. Automatically, I knew the answer.

I raised my hand, and Mr. Karish looked up from his book. "The bathroom is down the hall and to the left, Miss Jerald."

"Um, no, that's not what I wanted. I have the answer to the problem. It's simple."

"Ah, thank you, Samantha, but I would like to give the other kids a chance to finish the problem before I ask for the answer."

"Well, let's see what she's got," someone said, and who else but Meagyn was crossing her arms, challenging me.

"Okay, then. Samantha? Will you please come up to the board?" the balding teacher asked. Shyly, I got up and went to the front of the class, and wrote the answer on the board with green chalk.

2 54 3

I looked at my handwriting, and then stepped away from the blackboard to show my answer. I knew I was right. I learned how to solve problems involving matrices when I was ten.

Mr. Karish examined my written answer with the one in his book, and looked at me. "Samantha... how did you figure that out in your head?" I shrugged.

"I'm good at math," I said simply.

"Yes, but... you solved that problem within... seconds. It's humanely impossible." He argued. He turned to the rest of the class. "Okay, change of subject. Now, it's order of operation."

PEMDAS, huh? This was too easy. He wrote the problem on the board: 5(-6+52)+38-48

He had to be kidding us, right? The answer was obvious: -65,268

I raised my hand again, and Mr. Karish looked at me. "Yes, Samantha?" It was weird, not going by Serena. I would have to get used to people calling me Sam or Samantha from now on.

"Negative sixty-five thousand, two hundred and sixty-eight." I said simply, writing the work out.

He checked my work, and looked at me in astonishment. "Miss Jerald, I'm going to have to take you to the principal's office real quick, so, if you would come with me?"

I glanced nervously at James, and he shrugged, not sure what would happen. So I followed Mr. Karish out the room and down the hall to the front office.


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Do you know the feeling where you know everything's gonna be fine, yet your heart is still racing like the speed of light? Well, yeah. That was my feeling as I sat in the stiff chairs in the front office. The place smelled like paper and over-heated electronics.

I took deep breaths, trying to slow my heart rate. Was I going to have to go to the hospital because I was ahead of the other kids in my grade? Oh, God, please don't let that happen! Hospitals meant information forms, and information forms meant more lying, which, as I have probably made clear by now, _I do not like._

Was it too freaking obvious that I wasn't exactly "human"? Or did they just think I was too freaking smart for the school? The bell rang, and James had told me that when the bell rang, it signaled next class. Quickly, I picked up my book bag off the floor and started walking towards the door when the principal – Ms. Harris – came out.

She was a tall, black woman with a lavender blouse and a gray pencil skirt. Her hair was relaxed and curled, similar to mine before I cut it. Thin, silver hoops dangled from her ears, and she looked pretty nice.

"Where are you going, young lady?" she asked sternly. Oh, great. My dad all over again.

"To my next class," I said, confused. Where else would I be going?

"I don't believe until you tell me why you're here that I'll let you go to your next class." She said, crossing her arms.

"Uh, well, actually, I'm Shadowing someone and I think he's probably really worried about me, so, if you'll excuse me..." I reached for the handle, but she put a hand on my shoulder, as if it could stop me. Well, it sure as hell made me freeze in my tracks. This was gonna get interesting...

"Why are you here?" Ms. Harris repeated, her face completely blank.

"I don't know. All I was doing was sitting in Algebra, doing my work in front of the class, and then Mr. Karish said I had to come down with him to the front office. He just left me here." I replied, trying not to lose my temper.

"Well, then, I'll take you to your class then, so you won't be count as late. Who are you Shadowing?"

"James Rogers," I replied, not really caring about being late.

"Cara, can you look up James Rogers in the school directory? I need to know what class he's got next." Ms. Harris asked the secretary.

"Oh, thanks, Ms. Harris, but I know what class James has next. I memorized his schedule so if I ever got lost, I'd know where to go." I said quickly, just wanting to get out of that place.

"Okay, then. Just tell the teacher you were with me," She called after I was already out in the lobby. I walked to James' class, and entered in the room while the teacher was apparently giving them a lecture.

Scanning the faces for James', I eventually found it and was happy to see that relief had flooded his eyes, but before I could make my way towards those incredibly dark eyes, the teacher had stopped me.

"Excuse me, can I help you with something?" he asked me, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, um, well, I'm Shadowing James, and..." I started, but he cut me off.

"Say no more, go ahead and sit down wherever you'd like."

"Thanks," I tried not to bump into anyone while I picked my way past kids to James' seat.

"Hey," he whispered. "Where were you? Mr. Karish didn't say anything when he got back to class. It was really weird. He acted like you didn't exist."

"Huh," I muttered. Was it really possible if Mr. Karish was one of Dad's "friends"?

* * *

Meagyn was walking the halls of the school, directed to one of the bathroom halls. Anger boiled inside of her – she couldn't stop thinking about James and that... _bitch!_ Who was she to come in and take her crush out of her reach? Sam was the one girl Meagyn had a real problem with. Sure, she didn't like a lot of girls, but that was just the way high school worked; you weren't gonna love everyone. But this was personal.

She'd had a crush on James since kindergarten, when she saw him on the first day of school, hiding behind his mom's legs. Meagyn had always been good friends with him, but she sometimes felt they'd never be more than that. She'd been hinting at the fact that she liked him for the past couple of months now, but, again, James never was one to take a hint.

The hot pink and light blue highlights in her hair (which she thought looked so much better then Sam's green one) got in her eyes, and she pushed it back, frustrated that the long, dark strands never seemed to stay in one place.

She kicked a locker close to her, making an echoing sound that vibrated off the walls. Why did Sam have to be so damn perfect? She was beautiful, sickingly sweet, and from what Meagyn heard, she was incredibly smart.

After using the bathroom, Meagyn looked at herself in the mirror while washing her hands. A flicker of something different crossed her face, and she smiled evilly. Sam was going down.


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

It was time for the most nerve-wrecking period of the day – Lunch. I wasn't sure if I would make it out alive or not.

"You okay?" James asked me, putting a hand on my shoulder. I nodded slowly, staring at the tables that were filling up quickly and tightly gripping my lunch box. Penny had made James and me both lunches, which I was extremely thankful for.

"C'mon, there's Meagyn and Alex. Let sit down," He pulled on my arm, but I was frozen with fear. Within the past three hours, I realized that I was super claustrophobic. You know, staying inside all day for three fourths of my life.

"S?" The sound of James' voice snapped me back into reality.

"Yeah, sorry. Just spaced out for a second," I followed him to the table and sat down. Meagyn glanced up from her food and looked back down.

"Hey, guys," Alex said.

"Hi," I said quietly, opening my lunch box and pulling out a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich on white. When Nick and Luke came over, Luke sat on the other side of Meagyn and Nick sat on my right.

He glanced at James, and I think I was the only one who noticed the quick flash of something in his eyes... jealousy, maybe?

Oh, God, please don't tell me that Nick has a crush on me too! I couldn't stand all these... emotions. It was literally driving me insane. If I got another chance to witness those crazy emotions, I would probably go on a majiquel killing rampage.

Outside after school, Meagyn came up to me.

"So, Sam," she said, smiling unnaturally. Okay, something was up. "Are you buying or renting?"

"Excuse me?" I asked, completely confused. What in all of burning hell was she talking about?

"Your house. Are you buying or renting it?" she explained.

"Oh, um, well..." God, why did she have to ask such a difficult question? "My parents can't afford a house right now, and, you see, my dad and James' dad are really good friends, so… my family is kind of renting to stay with James and his family."

"Oh, cool," she muttered, as if she thought just the opposite. Well, I wouldn't blame her. If my crush had a girlfriend and he was already living with her, I'd hate her too. So I really didn't take it personally.

I stopped walking and turned to face Meagyn. _Just spit it out, Serena. _"Meagyn, I know you like James. And I'm sorry that I'm... dating him, but I can't control his emotions and make him like you back. But if I could, trust me, I would. I can't take all this lovey-dovey crap much longer."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, _wait._" Meagyn held up her hands, gesturing me to stop. "How do you know I like James?"

My eyes widened and I froze with fear. Should I tell Meagyn everything? Did I trust her like I trusted James?

The answer? Even though Meagyn had made it clear she didn't like me, I did trust her. I don't know why, but something in me, something I didn't know was there, told me I could, and I trusted myself. Sighing, I grabbed her arm and pulled her behind a nearby tree.

"I'll tell you about me," I said, trying to not scream at the top of my lungs. "But you have to swear to God that you won't say a word to _anyone. _That includes your parents, siblings, cousins... I'm dead serious when I say you can't repeat anything to anyone without my permission. Okay?"

She looked kind of scared, but she gathered herself, looked me in the eye, and nodded.

So I took a deep breath, straightened my back, and told her _everything._


	15. Chapter 14

**Part Two**

I've Got the _Majique _In Me

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Wow," Meagyn said, taking this all in. It was a lot for her, I knew that, but it was also a lot for me, knowing that there were only two other people on this entire planet who knew that Serena Elizabeth Johnson was still very much alive. "And James and I are the only ones who know?"

I nodded, hoping she realized how personal this was to me. Suddenly, I didn't feel so good about this.

"Hey, are you okay? You're looking a little green. Maybe I should get the nurse..." She started looking around for help.

"No, Meagyn, I'm fine." I said, reaching out to stop her from going anywhere. She turned around and her face dropped. "What?" I asked.

"Sam – I mean, Serena, wasn't your hair blonde a second ago?"

"Huh?" She reached out and pulled a few strands of my hair into my line of vision. They were dark brown, almost black.

"And you're eyes are green now, not blue."

I groaned. "Not again!"

And James just had to show up at that moment, when I looked like someone completely different.

"Hey, Meagyn! Have you seen Sam? I've been looking everywhere for her." He said. I tapped his shoulder.

"Yeah, James? I'm right here. And don't even bother with the whole Samantha/Serena thing. She knows. I just told her everything. Oh, and, yes I know I look different, thanks for noticing." I said sarcastically. James had his mouth open as if he were about to say something, but he shut it and shook his head.

"How in the world...?" he started, but stopped.

"I don't even know, okay? But I've been changing the way I've looked ever since I was six, and blonde with blue eyes seems to be my normal setting since that's what I'm on most of the time and that's what Mom looks like in my picture. I've never tried to control, and even if I did, I don't think I would be able to. And that's that."

"Well, why don't you try?" Meagyn said. "I mean, it shouldn't be that hard right? You can control the invisibility and your glowing thing. Why not this... alteration of genes or whatever?"

"She's got a point," James said, shrugging.

"Fine, I'll try. But not here. We need to be somewhere more... private." I said, glancing at the few remaining kids roaming campus.

"You guys could come to my house. My parents won't be home until eight, and we can walk right over." Meagyn said.

"Perfect. And I'll also need a...'guinea pig', if you prefer. You know; someone to test on. Any volunteers?" Meagyn and I looked at each other and we seemed to have the same thought. Our eyes simultaneously shot to James.

"Huh-uh, no way. Not gonna do it." He said, shaking his head and backing away. I turned back into myself, and made my eyes big and round. Oh, so now it worked!

"Please, James?" I asked, trying to sound all sweet and innocent. "For me?"

He sighed, and then turned to look at the departing busses. "Fine! But only because you used Teddy Bear eyes."

I smiled, and held my fist up so Meagyn could bump it from behind. When she did, I turned around. "Okay, so let's get a-going."

James sat on the carpeted floor of Meagyn's bedroom, still surprised at how non-girly it was. Sure, he'd known Meagyn since Kindergarten and known that she was more on the Tomboy-ish side, but he also knew her favorite color was hot pink, and that's the color he expected her room to be, he guessed.

Instead, Meagyn Kingsley's room was dark purple and everything else was either pitch black or navy blue. Even her door and trim was painted black.

The girls were rushing around, getting things that James didn't understand why they needed in the first place. They kept standing in Meagyn's personal bathroom, worrying about makeup and hair.

"Guys," he groaned. "We're just gonna change anyway. Why are you going through all this trouble when it's just gonna go down the drain anyway."

Meagyn and Serena looked at James, then at each other. And they burst into laughter. S walked into the dark room and stood in front of him.

"James, the reason we're going overboard with all the makeup is 'cause we wanna see if I can still turn people back, even when it's not the natural look of that person." She said. He nodded in understanding, even though he really didn't get it. "You finished, Meg?" she called over her shoulder.

"Almost... hey, could you help me with my eye shadow? You're better at it then I am." Meagyn replied from the bathroom.

"Sure," S said, reentering the bathroom. When they were done, the two of them joined James on the carpet. "Okay, let's get this show on the road. Lipstick, please."

"The scarlet or the burgundy?" Meagyn asked, letting her hand hover over the tubes. S pondered for a second, looking from the make up to James.

"Scarlet," they said together. Meagyn handed S the tube, and she popped the cap. Serena had to use the Teddy Bear eyes on James an amount of times to get him to agree to this. She held the tube up to his lips and started applying it.

Meagyn snorted, and S was trying to hold back a giggle. "Okay, I think that's enough." She said, pulling her arm back.

"I don't think it'll work, but go ahead," Meagyn said, laughing between her words.

With my eyes squeezed shut, I relaxed my face and focused on the hilarious image of James with bright red lipstick on inside my head. I tried to think of someone to turn him into, and then I had it. I kept going back and forth between the mental pictures, and then when I though it worked, I opened my eyes.

James was still James, plus the makeup. _Crap,_ I thought, closing my eyes to try again. I did the same thing I did before, but cleared my mind of everything else except those two pictures. I heard Meagyn gasp, and she shook me. My eyes flew open and I smiled. In front of me was the exact way I imagined Fang from Maximum Ride, kind of a mix between the short haired manga version of him and Avan Jogia.

"Hmm, definitely an improvement," Meagyn said, stroking her chin as if she had a beard. James shot her a glance, and I laughed, knowing it would tick him off.

"Well, you definitely are hotter than before." I agreed.

"Yeah, you look like..." Meagyn glanced at me for a second. "Like how S pictures Fang from Maximum Ride."

My lips parted a bit. How could she just blurt that out in the middle of the day? More importantly, how did she know about the fact that I just turned James into Fang?

"Uh, S? You just said out loud a second ago that your image of Fang was a mix between the short haired manga version of him and Avan Jogia. James looks a little like Avan Jogia and that version of Fang. And, yes, I've read the mangas." She said, gesturing to her bookshelf, which was black, like a lot of other things in the room. "They're somewhere up there,"

James and I looked at each other, then back at Meagyn. "What?" she asked when she saw our amazed expressions.

"Meagyn, S didn't say anything like that. I would've registered it since it was something about me." James said, sounding a little self-conscious. "Cause whenever I hear my name, I automatically pay attention. I don't know why, though."

"Huh, I could've sworn you said that. And didn't you say how did I know about that?" I shook my head and she looked at me like I had three heads. Which, come to think of it, might've been possible.

"But, the weird thing is, I was _thinking_ it." I said, and she starred at me some more. "Meagyn," I tried softly. "I don't know how in the fiery pits of hell this happened, but I think you have the power to read minds."

"What? But... how the..." She stammered, trying to process this information in her brain. "This doesn't make sense." She finally said, firm and confident.

"I know, I know," I said, patting her back. "But you'll get used to the idea. It's actually really cool that you were able to unlock a part of your brain I haven't even got to yet."

"No, it's not cool!" Meagyn burst. "All this weird stuff just started up in my life, and now it's personally affecting me! This is crazy, and all you can say is that I'll get _used _to it? I'll never get use to it, Serena!"

"Jeeze," I muttered. "I was just trying to calm you down so you'd see the bright side."

I thought her cap had blown before, but now Meagyn was steaming. "_Out!"_ She screamed, pointing at her door. "Get out of my room, get out of my house, get out of my _life!"_

Within the short time I'd come to know Meagyn Kingsley, I'd found out that even though she appears to be hardcore and vicious, she really would never hurt a fly. It's because her parents are divorced (living with only her dad, like I did) that she hides the soft side of her. She just tries to look tough so that way, no one sees all the emotion happening behind the I-don't-give-a-crap act. But I do. I notice everything.

I got up and walked towards the door, looking back to see if the Fang James was following.

"Go ahead," he said with a voice deeper and quieter than his own. "I can calm her down," I nodded, then exited through the doorway, not quite closing it behind me so I could see what was happening. James turned back into James and he bent down to the carpet, scooping Meagyn up in his arms. She was bursting with sobs and pain, the two things I'd learned she _never_ showed in public. He cradled her gently against his chest, letting her tears soak through his t-shirt.

Yes, James was _my_ boyfriend, I realize that, but I wasn't jealous when I saw the way he held her. I could tell that James loved Meagyn, and I could also tell that he loved me. But the bond between my only Knowing (They're the only ones who _know,_ so I call them the Knowing.) friends was stronger than anything I'd ever heard of before, read in books. And yet, I wasn't mad at Meagyn or James, or anyone else for that matter.

But, I accepted the fact that James and Meagyn were meant for each other.

So, before closing the door completely, I made a note appear next to James' crossed legs and smiled.

This was the right thing to do.


	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

The names came to her like whispers, both of them ones she knew by heart. Her two daughters, the twins that no person knew were related to her, or each other.

_Serena_ was the first name. She quite liked that name, even though it wasn't the one she picked herself. When the first of the twins, the blonde, was born, she named her Venus, because of her light hair and the way her eyes looked like the deep blue ocean reflecting the sunlight, reminding her of the Roman goddess.

_Meagyn_ was the second. She liked that name better then the Latin one she'd picked for the younger of the twins as well. Luna, named for her dark hair and eyes, was equally pretty as her sister, but in many different ways and for many different reasons.

Venus and Luna, or Serena and Meagyn, as the Mother liked to call them, were the only two children of her in existence. All of her other children had died at a young age because for what their mother was. But the Twins had survived for some strange reason. Maybe it was because they were the only ones of her littler who received some of her Powers.

The Mother was called many things, including just the Mother. All of her Powers related to either nature or the human body, which she had taken an interest to ever since she had to give her daughters to humans for protection of _him._

The Mother's ability to alter genes was passed on to Venus, along with the invisibility and heat gifts. Her ability to read and control human and immortal minds had been passed to Luna, including willing water and controlling plants and earth.

"My queen," a voice interrupted the Mother's thoughts. "I have been looking over the children,"

"And?" Her voice was smooth and sweet. When you heard it, you couldn't help but have the feeling that melted chocolate was running down your throat.

"They have met each other, face to face. We were concerned because we thought it was against your orders to let them meet one another. Should we do something?" The messenger said, his face pale as the clouds in the bright blue sky. The Mother put her hand in the air to calm him from his fright.

"No," she crooned, smiling while looking outside the window. So the sisters had finally met after all these years? "They're old enough now. Do they know they're related?"

"I don't believe so," he replied, regaining the coloring in his face. "The darker one –"

"Luna," the queen cut in.

"– Luna, just discovered her Mind, while the other –"

"Venus,"

"– Venus, has been having strange encounters with her Genes, Heat, and Transparence ever since she was six years of age."

"Very well, then," the queen said, nodding at the messenger to be dismissed. "Thank you for this news."

"It was an honor, my queen." He said, giving her a quick bow and walking outside the room.

"Oh, girls," she murmured, getting up from her throne and pacing back and forth in front of it. "Do I have to come down there myself?"


End file.
